The Ghost of You
by XxTwistedThornxX
Summary: He could still see the bright smile she gave him. It was the first time she threw her arms around him and embraced him, overjoyed that he had thought on his own. He hadn't known what to do, so he just stood there, awkwardly.  Looking back, he wished he had returned the embrace. Just so he could have held her for a few moments longer. UPDATED 6/17/2012


**This is a direct sequel to my story "Sunshine" so, it's kind of important to read that first. **

**UPDATED: 6/17/2012**

"_My name's Vizyn, but nobody calls me that. Call me Vivi!"_

"_No."_

"_Aw, c'mon, please? Everybody else does!"_

"_Is that an order?"_

"_Hmph! You're no fun."_

"…"

"…"

"_Viv."_

"_Huh?"_

"_If it pleases you, I will call you 'Viv.'"_

He could still see the bright smile she gave him. It was a name he had given her, one that made her all his. It was the first time she threw her arms around him and embraced him, overjoyed that he had thought on his own. He hadn't known what to do, so he just stood there, awkwardly.

Looking back, he wished he had returned the embrace, just so he could have held her for a few moments longer.

Charon watched Star Paladin Cross with blank eyes. The cyborg wore a grim expression as she lifted the girl into her arms. She gave him a curt nod and marched back to the Citadel, holding Vizyn's limp form close to her armor.

Charon's throat was tight but his tears were no longer flowing. He stared into his now cold, empty arms. Hadn't he just felt her warmth against him?

He was lost; his body shook from the flood of emotion churning within him.

Sarah Lyons approached the ghoul cautiously. She reached a hand out to him but paused half-way and dropped her arm to her side.

"She died well," she offered, Charon's eyes lifted to her and narrowed. "The Brotherhood of Steel will take care of her; I'll see that she's treated with the respect she deserves."

The ghoul shook his head and forced himself to his feet. It wasn't enough. It would never be enough. He wanted to scream at the Sentinel, to shoot and hit and kick her until she understood the pain he felt.

But, it wasn't the woman's fault. She didn't fail Viv.

He did.

His chest felt cold as he repeated the words over and over in his mind.

_My fault…My fault…_

Without a word, Charon turned and began walking.

* * *

><p><em>A tragedy has befallen us, children. That crazy kid, little miss 101, passed away three days ago fighting the good fight.<em>

_Vizyn Nielson and her gargantuan ghoul lead the Brotherhood of Steel bravely against the enclave at the Jefferson Memorial. Our little girl fought them, tooth and nail, knife and bullet, to give our wasteland clean water. Well, she did it. The brotherhood ran those bastards out and she started the purifier. The Brotherhood of Steel has assured me that she is being treated with the honor and respect she deserves._

_Miss 101 touched us all, some way. Every time you take a drink of our fresh, clean water, remember her sacri-_

The radio's casing shattered and Three Dog's voice faded away with the boom of a shotgun. Charon growled, setting his gun at his side and downing the last bottle of beer from the stash he'd found in the footlocker in the corner.

"That's enough of that garbage," he slurred, throwing the empty bottle aside to rest with its fellows. His head was swimming and he glared at the pile of bottles to his right. How much had he drunk?

_1...2...46...fuck._

Charon rose to his feet, bracing himself against the wall. The small scrap-yard shed he had chosen as his shelter was dark, a small oil lamp on the floor provided the only illumination as he shuffled to the door. He grabbed at the handle but grasped air instead. The ghoul snarled and went to grab it again. It was gone as soon as his massive hand clenched shut.

"A wise guy, huh?" Charon glared at the handles as they waved back and forth, taunting him.

_How could you have thought to protect her?_

_You can't even open a fucking door!_

_Not so tough now, are you?_

Charon slumped down to the floor, cradling his head in his hands. It was too much. All he wanted was to get drunk and forget about everything, just for one night.

He'd heard that the pain doesn't last forever. He knew that in a few months, the wasteland would be as it was before. It would be like she wasn't gone or had never been there in the first place. But, he would still be alone.

He felt the pit of his stomach turn cold and shook his head.

"There's got to be something," Charon clambered up and stumbled back to where he found the alcohol.

He opened the footlocker and felt around in the shadows until his fingers brushed against something in the corner. Charon paused and lifted the object in front of his face, squinting to see it in his inebriated state.

It was an inhaler. Slightly cracked and battered, but Charon could make out a substance in the tube.

_This is…_

Charon shook his head and tossed the Jet to the side. He wasn't that far gone, not yet. He slumped back against the wall, giving up on his search for more booze. The shed was still spinning and Charon glared at the pile of bottles in the corner. Perhaps he really had had enough for the night.

"_Can I try some?"_

_Charon paused, bottle half way to his lips. His eyes drifted down to meet hers in question._

"_Beer?"_

_She nodded, staring at the bottle curiously._

"_You seem to like it, alright. I've never had it before."_

_The ghoul shrugged and held the bottle out to her. Vizyn took it without hesitation, fingers shyly brushing against his, and brought it to her lips. Charon arched a brow as she took a large gulp._

_The young girl jerked and coughed, eyes tearing as she made unintelligible sounds of disgust. Charon chuckled and gently patted her back, grinning when she cast an accusatory glare at him._

"_How can you drink that?" She shoved the bottle back into his waiting hand._

"_You get used to it," He gulped down the rest and laughed at Vizyn's disgusted expression._

Charon growled and turned away. What hope was there if even alcohol brought back memories? Wasn't there anywhere he could look without seeing her face?

His eyes landed on the Jet inhaler.

"A way to kill time," Snowflake had called it. And wasn't that exactly what he needed to do? Before his intoxicated brain could register his actions, Charon picked the inhaler off the floor.

He'd never taken the drug, but he'd seen enough addicts in the 9th Circle to know how it was done. He wrapped his lips around the bottom and put his thumb on the top.

Just once, just for tonight. Just until he got a little bit stronger.

She could forgive him, couldn't she?

Charon pressed the plunger.

* * *

><p>"What happened?" Elder Lyons's pale eyes widened in shock and his hands shook both with his age and agitation. Vargas lay Sarah on the cot, quickly peeling away her charred armor.<p>

"Remnant Enclave forces," he explained, sweat and blood trickling down the back of his neck. "We were searching for the ghoul, as you ordered. They came out of nowhere!"

Elder Lyons looked over the young man's shoulder to catch a glimpse of his daughter. Half her face was black with soot, her midsection sported laser burns. Her blonde hair was disheveled and fanned out wildly around her head, and blood stained her temple.

"We took them out," Vargas assured the Elder, "But, we were outnumbered."

Sawbones hovered over to its new patient and began its work. Lyons watched the robot with desperate eyes, wringing his wrinkled hands anxiously.

"Patient 2 is stable," it reported almost an hour later. Relief flooded through the elder and he rubbed his forehead.

"Thank God," He murmured. Vargas heaved his own sigh of relief before turning to his superior.

"I never took you for the religious type, Elder."

Lyons shook his head and gazed at his daughter, then moved to stand beside her bed.

"There are times where a man can rely on little else," He cast his tired eyes to "Patient 1" and took his daughter's hand in his own. "God knows we can't lose both of them."

Vargas nodded and stepped to Patient 1's bedside. With a small frown, he placed her favorite grey hat on the bedside table.

"I may say a few prayers, myself."

* * *

><p>Home. This was home, right? Charon looked at his surroundings. There was the table, the pink armchair, the lockers. Yes, this was the living room. Charon sighed happily and poked his head into the kitchen area.<p>

The dishes were clean and the living room was empty. That meant Vizyn was on the roof. His heart thumped excitedly, it felt like it had been forever since he'd been home with her. He took the steps two at a time and vaulted up through the hatch in the bedroom.

Vizyn sat with her legs swinging off the edge of the roof, a half-drunken Nuka-cola clutched in her small fingers. She turned her head slightly and grinned at him.

"Hey, big guy! Back already?"

Charon hurried to the girl and gathered her in his arms, holding her tight as he crushed her lips in kiss. Vizyn squeaked and eagerly returned his affection.

"Woah, what's gotten into you?" She managed, trying to catch her breath once Charon finally pulled away. Charon growled and buried his face in her hair, inhaling. She smelt the same. Like fresh air and water.

"I miss you," As the words left his mouth, he realized how true they were. An overwhelming sense of dread filled his chest and he felt his eyes prickle with tears. "I love you," he choked out, "I never told you, but I do. I can't…I can't do anything without you."

"Charon," Vizyn smiled softly and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his chest. He could feel the way her throat vibrated as she hummed soothingly.

_You are my sunshine,_

_My only sunshine,_

_You make me happy when skies are grey,_

_You'll never know, dear,_

_How much I love you,_

_Please don't take my sunshine away._

The ghoul felt himself relax in her arms and he tilted her head up for another kiss.

She tasted sweet, like Cola and Sugar bombs. Charon pulled her against him, desperately deepening the kiss.

He choked.

Blood filled his mouth and Charon wrenched away, spitting the vile fluid onto the rooftop in a huge glob. He stared down at it in disbelief then turned his wide eyes to Vizyn.

Blood dribbled from her mouth and her eyes rolled up into the back of her head. Her flesh melted away, giving her a ghoulish appearance. Her voice cracked and gargled and she was unable to speak. Charon watched in horror as her flesh and muscle burned away, leaving nothing but a charred black skeleton.

_Late last night, dear,_

_As I lay sleeping,_

_I dreamed I held you in my arms,_

She turned to ash in his arms.

_When I awoke dear,_

_I was mistaken._

Charon scrambled away and ran back towards the hatch. The Megaton shack began to collapse around him, tumbling into an abyss.

_So I hang my head…_

Arms ripped up through the darkness, grabbing onto his ankles and arms. They held him down on a slab of metal, stronger than steel. He couldn't move. He opened his mouth to scream but he was gagged with a leather strap.

He could see them. 6 of them. All dressed in crisp white coats. Masks covered the lower half of their faces and they wore caps to cover their hair. Their eyes were nothing but pitch black holes.

_And cried._

They were singing, all of them. Just to torment him more before they continued their experiments. One stepped forward with a syringe, flicking it with a gloved hand. The doctor got closer, positioning the needle at the side of Charon's neck.

Vizyn's azure eyes glistened with delight as she injected him.

* * *

><p>Charon's insides burned. The sunlight from outside pierced through his eyelids and hurt his eyes.<p>

_I'm never fucking doing that again._

The ghoul took a deep breath and opened his eyes, recoiling with a yelp as pain seared through his brain. He slammed his head against the wall, flailing again as something wet lapped against his face.

Charon peeked one eye at time, slowly to allow himself to adjust. His vision was blurry but it slowly began to focus on a furry animal standing in front of him. It took him a few moments to realize it was a dog.

The hound stared at him, head cocked to the side in question. If Charon didn't know any better, he'd say the mutt's mismatched eyes were laughing at him.

"What?" He snapped, rubbing a hand against his abused skull. "Never seen a ghoul with a hangover before?"

The dog barked. Charon growled at himself for even wondering whether it was in the affirmative or not.

"What're you doing here?" Charon noticed the leather belt around the dog's neck. "Bet your master's looking for you."

The dog whimpered sadly. Charon sighed and pushed himself off the ground, slinging his shotgun over his shoulder.

"We're in the same boat," He murmured then shook his head. This was a damn animal; he had more important shit to do than converse with it. Like finding more liquor. Charon nudged the door to the shack all the way open, wincing at the blazing sunlight. He took a deep breath to steel himself and marched out into the Scrapyard.

He stopped outside the gate and looked over his shoulder. He _thought_ he heard the little mutt following him. The dog stared up at him stupidly, its tongue lolling out the side of its mouth, tail wagging.

Charon growled.

"No. Get lost, mutt!"

The dog whimpered.

"Don't try that with me."

It scratched at the dusty earth, ears flat against its head. Charon grit his teeth, but couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards the dog.

Charon sighed and turned around.

"Fine, but you'd better make yourself useful or else you'll be dinner."

The dog barked happily, tail wagging frantically behind it. Charon shook his head and turned back around.

"Alright, let's get going, Meat."

* * *

><p>"Still nothing to report?" Elder Lyons's bushy eyebrows raised as the paladins returned empty handed.<p>

"No one in Megaton has seen him since before the battle," Vargas reported.

"Rivet City didn't have any leads either," Cross frowned, looking at the two unconscious women.

The elder sighed.

"Sarah had believed it would be easier for the ghoul to-"

"Charon," Cross interrupted. Lyon's sighed.

"Yes, Charon, for him to be here when Miss Nielson wakes up. _If_ she wakes up."

_If either of them ever wake up._

"We'll keep looking," Cross promised. Vargas shifted, gaze wandering from Sarah to Vizyn in worry.

"It's been almost two weeks. Even if they do wake up, what if there's some sort of permanent damage?"

Cross and Lyons stared at the paladin but he didn't shift under their joined gaze. Everyone was thinking it; he may as well get it in the open.

"If it comes to that," Lyons began, staring sadly at his daughter. "We'll deal with it then."

"Yes, sir," Vargas saluted and followed Cross out of the Citadel.

"You take the west, I'll try north," She ordered. Vargas nodded and pulled his helmet over his head, gazing off in the direction of the Purifier with a stern expression.

They were relying on a miracle, they all knew it. Vargas had learned a long time ago that miracles don't happen.

_But, God's got to stop pissing on us some time._


End file.
